


Six Cold Feet

by LizEBoredom



Category: The Royal Romance (Visual Novel)
Genre: Blood, Blood Loss, Blood and Injury, Character Death, Depression, F/M, Gen, Grief/Mourning, Guilt, Implied/Referenced Character Death, References to Depression, Survivor Guilt, Wakes & Funerals
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-26
Updated: 2018-10-26
Packaged: 2019-08-08 02:27:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,184
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16420646
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LizEBoredom/pseuds/LizEBoredom
Summary: An AU of Minah's (MC's) life if Drake didn't survive the assassination attempt at the Homecoming Ball





	Six Cold Feet

**Author's Note:**

> Ubiquitous Disclaimer: Characters belong to Pixelberry. I’m just borrowing them.
> 
> A/N: This fulfills an Anonymous request for Drake and Minah “pure angst.” I want to point out that this is a FULL AU. This does not take place in my main universe for Drake and Minah. I would also like to apologize in advance to all the Drake stans. This killed me to write. I am SO sorry. The song lyrics are from Six Cold Feet by Leroy Carr (more recently covered by Hugh Laurie).

 

> Just remember me darling  
>  When I’m in six feet of cold cold ground  
>  Always think of me darling  
>  Say yeah there’s another good man gone down

Screaming, chaos, smoke, the smell of gunpowder. Flashes of color passed in front of her, jostling her in their attempts to escape while she simply sat there attempting to protect him from the trampling horde. A deep crimson was seeping out of the wound in his shoulder, staining her golden dress. She could hear the blood rushing in her ears, her vision blurred. Bastien attempting to pull her away from him, but she refused. She had to keep him awake, had to stay with him.

Liam was soon by her side talking her into letting them bring Drake to the hospital. He was pale, and his skin was cold. She’d been whispering to him, telling him she loved him, begging him to stay alive. He was smiling at her softly, his eyes warm through the obvious pain. No words other than a whispered, “I love you” had come from him in the eternity since he’d thrown himself in front of her, saving her life.

The journey from the palace ballroom to the hospital passed in a blur. Faceless voices telling her everything would be okay. People were shouting instructions, sirens blared, there was a rush of activity, Bastien and Liam pulling her into a car to follow behind the ambulance. She could focus on nothing on the journey, hearing the gunshot over and over, feel the contact he’d made with her body, seeing the blood seeping out from his shoulder and his face growing paler.

When they finally arrived, Liam spoke to the doctor in hushed tones. He led her to a waiting area, telling her Drake was in surgery, but that he’d lost a lot of blood. All she could focus on now was willing him to live. The guilt she carried already was unbearable. If she’d just moved faster; hell, if she’d never come to Cordonia, none of this would have happened. It was all her fault. Drake should be off happy having a reunion with his sister and nephew right now, not in a hospital bed.

She registered nothing until a doctor came out to speak to Liam again. The grim look on his face did not give her hope. When Liam turned to her, his eyes were filled with regret and concern. That was all it took for her to break down. Liam wrapped his arms around her, telling her that Drake was awake, but didn’t have much time. He’d lost too much blood and his unique blood type meant they didn’t have enough to save him. They’d need to say their goodbyes now. She nodded and pulled herself together. She’d need to be strong for this. She asked Liam to come with her.

Her breath caught in her throat when she walked into the room. Drake lay there in the bed, his skin sallow, dark circles under his eyes. His lips were tinged blue. When she approached his bedside, she took his hand and squeezed lightly. When he squeezed back, there was no strength behind it.

“Drake…”

His smile was weak as he turned to face her. He attempted to lift his hand to touch her face, but he couldn’t raise it high enough.

“Cavendish,” his raspy voice, once a strong, rich baritone was now barely above a whisper. “You’re here.”

“I’m here,” she said, trying to contain the sadness that threatened to spill over. “I love you, Drake. I love you so much.”

Her quavering voice broke slightly at the end. She was trying so hard to keep it together. Liam saw this and came to her rescue.

“Brother,” he said with a watery laugh, “you always were reckless. You know you didn’t have to get yourself shot to be declared a national hero. I’d have done it anyway.”

Drake attempted a soft laugh, but there were tears in his eyes, too. His labored breathing was making it difficult for him to speak, but he had something he needed to say.

“Liam, you’re my…best friend. I want…I want you to marry Cavendish.”

“What? Drake! What are you – ”

He squeezed her hand again, cutting her off.

“Marry her…for me. We both know…she’s the queen…Cordonia deserves,” he rasped. “You love her…Have a family…Fill the palace with babies.” His tears were now rolling down his cheeks, his hands shaking. Minah lost control of her own emotions as she stood sobbing at his bedside. Liam just stared, agog at what his friend was saying. “Name one…after me.”

He turned to Minah. “Cavendish, I told you…I could die…happy. I … I didn’t want it to happen … so soon.”

“Shhhh. Drake…I can’t do this. I can’t lose you. Please. Please don’t leave me. Please.”

“Do this … for me. Liam is … good for you…he loves you. He can … give you everything…I can’t. Promise me… Cavendish…please promise me.”

She nodded, unable to say anything else. He turned to Liam.

“Liam…love her…like I would.”

Liam promised, the conviction in his voice sounding like he was making a blood oath. Minah leaned over and kissed his lips, feeling how cold his skin was to the touch. He was wheezing, there were low moans coming with his exhales, and his eyelids were fluttering. She knew that meant it was almost time.

“Drake?”

“I’m … so … tired … Cavendish. Minah. I … love … ”

A small gurgle emitted from his throat, his eyes turned glassy, and his gaze unfocused. His jaw was slack, as was the hand she had been holding. He was gone. The only thing that registered her right then was that thought. He’s gone.

> Don’t cry baby, baby after I’m gone  
>  Don’t cry baby, don’t cry after I’m gone  
>  I’ve left the good man love you  
>  And I ain’t do nothing wrong

Everything that came after barely registered with her. Leaving the hospital. The memorial. Because the ground was still frozen, the burial would not take place for another two months. She had been numb through it all, sleepwalking as though in a trance. She’d lost weight, barely eating. Liam tried to be a comfort, but he was broken as well. She was so distraught that she’d made herself sick. She found herself vomiting what little she did eat. All the stress was eating away at her.

Liam realized he was losing her, too. He knew he had to do something to pull her out of this depression, but he wanted to respect her grief. She’d lost the man she loved, after all. It was the week leading up to the burial, and he’d noticed that she had been more tired than normal. He’d been getting her to walk with him daily. Some days they talked, some days they didn’t, but they lent each other support just by being there. These past few days, she hadn’t been able to walk as far without getting tired.

“You need to start eating, my love.”

“I’m not hungry, Liam. It isn’t going to help. It won’t bring him back.”

“He wouldn’t want you to make yourself sick over him. He’d want you to live for him. Do you think he’d be happy to see you like this?”

She admitted he wouldn’t. “But I’m throwing up everything I eat. It’s just easier not to.”

“I’m sure that’s just the stress of everything that’s happened. Please let me take you to a doctor.”

She agreed, and the next day found herself in a cold exam room, sitting on a paper-covered table, shivering. Liam was looking at her with concern as the nurse tutted around her, taking her vital signs.

“My love, are you going to be well enough for the funeral? It’s going to be a stressful day for us all, but I’m more worried about you.”

“Liam, the only thing that would keep me away is my own funeral. Don’t take this away from me,” she said, glaring at him.

He nodded his assent, satisfied that her spirit was still locked in there somewhere. She’d been so broken since Drake’s death, and she processed things very differently than he did. He grieved in silence and in solitude, only when he was away from the watchful eyes of others. She wore her sadness like a badge, as though confronting everyone she saw with it, daring them to display anything other than respect for the man she’d lost.

He had always admired her strength, but seeing how she was dealing with this loss, he also admired her bravery. He still felt guilty that Drake had asked him to marry her. Of course, he loved her and wanted nothing more than to marry her, but she’d made it clear that she loved Drake, not him. How could he force her to carry through this promise? He couldn’t. He would live with the guilt of breaking his promise to Drake, but he would never be able to live with the guilt of forcing her to marry someone she didn’t love.

The doctor soon came in, asking to draw some blood in order to run tests. A technician in scrubs covered with pictures of candy sat at her side to draw some blood and Liam wondered to himself what Maxwell’s reaction to the outfit might be had he been there. The doctor took the time to lecture Minah about how low her weight was, and talking to her about nutrition. They left the room again to run some tests, leaving him alone with her once again.

“So…”

He smiled at her. She was so uncomfortable with silence. He had to laugh to himself. Drake hated chatter more than anything. Those two likely would have driven each other crazy living together.

“Minah. I don’t want to rush you into making any decisions. However, I feel it necessary to make some type of decisions regarding my marriage soon, for the sake of stability.”

His words rang in Minah’s ears. She hadn’t forgotten their promise to Drake. And she did love Liam, but never had and never would as much as she’d loved Drake. She couldn’t help but wonder if marrying his best friend, the man he’d been so afraid of losing her to, was some form of betrayal. She knew no man would ever have her heart in the same way he did. Whether it was Liam or anyone else, they’d always have to share the space with the memory of him. At least marrying Liam meant that she’d be with someone who would understand, and who also loved him.

“Can you accept that I’ll never forget him?”

“I would never ask you to. I loved him as a brother, Minah. I never want to forget him, either.”

She nodded, tears pooling in her eyes. She’d been so wrapped up in her own grief, she’d allowed herself to forget all that Liam had also lost.

“Do you still want to marry me?”

“My love, my queen. I’ve never stopped loving you. I’m willing to give you all the time you need to feel the same, but there is nothing on this earth I want more than to marry you.”

“Please be patient with me, Liam. I do still love you. I will marry you. I’ll be your queen. But…for the rest of it, I do need time.”

“I wish this were happening under happier circumstances, my love, but know that you have made me very happy, indeed.”

A knock sounded at the door before the doctor entered again.

“Your Grace, I have wonderful news. We know what’s been causing your illness. You’re pregnant. Congratulations!”

She could only stare in shock at the doctor as he reiterated the importance of good nutrition. He let her know she should be scheduled for a scan within the week just to check on the development, and then she should schedule for a follow-up after that.

She and Liam simply stared at each other, neither wanting to move, wondering where to go from here.

> Just lay my body, lay my body in six cold feet of ground  
>  Just lay my body, in six cold feet of ground  
>  While I will be the loser, when that deal goes down

The day of the burial arrived. It was a small gathering, only friends and family in attendance. Minah was certain that she’d died the day Drake did, but the way her heart was cracking into a million small pieces as they lowered him into the ground, she knew she was very much still alive. After being numb for so long, she actually welcomed the pain. It was a quiet, respectful event, without the myriad of speeches and drinking that had marked the memorial service.

The only words spoken this day were quiet words of remembrance by each person as they threw a handful of dirt in after the coffin. They each kept a respectful distance in order to give the others their last moment with him. When it was Minah’s turn, she approached slowly, the finality of the act pressing on her chest like a weight. Her shaky hand reached down to pick up a fistful of the cold, damp earth. The smell of it assaulted her nostrils, bringing her back in time to her mother’s funeral. She closed her eyes, feeling the weight of losing the people she’d loved over and over again. When she spoke, it was softly. She understood this was her final goodbye.

“Drake…you saved my life, but it cost you yours. I’ll never forget that. I’ll never forget you. I’ll always think of you when I look at the stars. And…Drake, we’re having a baby.” She took a deep breath and continued.

“Heh. One time together and you got me pregnant, Walker. Liam knows. He’s … surprisingly okay with it. He misses you, too, but you know how he is. Always worried about everyone else, never thinking of himself. I miss you, you giant marshmallow. Who will teach my kids to fish and to camp? Who will sneak out of huge stupid parties with me now? Why did you have to leave? Why couldn’t you have just let me get shot?”

She was kneeling on the ground on all fours, throwing clumps of dirt at the coffin as she cried, her body heaving with her sobs. Liam was beside her, pulling her up to her feet. She buried her face in his chest, clinging to him to keep herself anchored. He held her close, his own tears falling for his friend as the groundskeepers began to shovel the dirt into the hole where his best friend, the one person in the world he had really leaned on, was laid to rest.

> Remember me baby, when I’m in six feet of cold cold ground  
>  Remember me baby, when I’m in six feet of cold cold ground  
>  Always think of me baby, say yeah there’s another good man gone down

Later that evening, one lone figure remained by the grave. One lone figure lay beside the freshly turned earth, staring up at the stars. One lone figure made a wish that night.

“I wish you were still with me. Drake, please don’t leave me here all alone.”

The nation celebrated with them when they got married, and celebrated with them several months later when they made the announcement that they were expecting. She and Liam cried during the ultrasound when the technician told them it was a girl. It had taken them a full month after the wedding to consummate their marriage, and then another week after that to shake off the feelings of guilt.

Negotiating their relationship hadn’t been easy, but they finally settled into a rhythm. Liam’s love for her only grew deeper over time, and her own love for him grew as well. However, they both knew there was a large hole in her heart he’d never be able to fill.

That hole was partially filled when she greeted her daughter for the first time. Drake’s daughter. Princess Darcy Walker Rhys was welcomed to the world by two people who would love and cherish her all the more because of who her father had been. She was born with a shock of brown hair that could be from Minah or Drake, but her eyes were definitely Drake’s. They were his chocolate brown eyes. Whenever Minah looked into them, her heart simultaneously broke and filled with love. He’d left a part of himself with her, and she would be eternally grateful.

In time, they welcomed two more children, Prince Drake and Princess Lia. After each of her children was born, Minah’s heart grew more and more, expanding to make more room for her growing family.

She and Liam were happy, and he was understanding when she had bouts of depression around the anniversary. He knew she’d be outside, lying in the maze, looking up at the sky. One night, he decided to join her. He walked out to find her lying on her back, staring at the stars, tears leaking out of the corners of her eyes. He knew this time was sacred to her, but he needed to talk to her.

“My Queen. I hope you don’t mind if I join you.”

“Liam? No, I don’t mind.”

“My love, it’s a big anniversary coming up. Do you wish to do something special?”

“Twenty years, Liam. It’s been twenty years. Everyone has moved on but me. Why can’t I move on?”

“If I’ve learned anything over the years, it’s that those you love will never truly leave you. Drake left us here, but look what he gave us in return. We have a beautiful daughter who certainly inherited his snark. We have a beautiful family, together. We have each other. He gave that to us. We honor him every day by continuing to love each other. But we’ll always have a piece missing because he can’t be here with us.”

“Do you think it’s time?”

He nodded, still looking up at the stars. “She should know who her true father is.”

“Thank you, Liam. For … being here, and for your patience. For your kindness. For your love. I know I haven’t been an easy person to live with since…” she shook her head, not wanting to complete the thought. “I love you, Liam.”

“And that,” she said, standing beside her daughter, “is our story. Your story. Your father – Drake – was a special man, Darcy. He taught me so much about myself. I loved him more than anything, and he left me something so special. He gave me my best friend in Liam, he gave me our family. He left a piece of himself with me when he gave me you.”

The two women stood at the grave, long grown over with grass, yet still well cared for. They didn’t speak; they didn’t need to. Both simply stood, lost in their own thoughts, contemplating the life of a man who left far too soon, yet whose legacy had touched so many lives.


End file.
